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Mario Kart 8
Mario Kart 8 (abbreviated to MK8) is a kart-racing game exclusive to the Wii U. It is the eighth Mario Kart game in the series (eleventh overall if including the'' arcade games). It was released on May 29, 2014, in Japan, May 30, 2014, in North America and Europe and May 31, 2014, in Australia. http://mariokart8.onegameguide.com/mario-kart-8-release-date/. A new feature, anti-gravity (like the hover-converted DeLorean DMC-12 Time Machine), is introduced to the ''Mario Kart ''series while past gimmicks such as gliding, underwater, and bikes return. Gameplay In the eighth installment of the ''Mario Kart series, anti-gravity is introduced. Via sensors, it enables players to drive on surfaces that are upside-down or tilted at a steep angle. This is one of the main focuses of the game, the feature being used in every new course. Gliding and underwater features return from Mario Kart 7 also, working the same way, as do coins. Kart customization also makes a return, with bikes added into the mix as well. ATVs are also new types of vehicles. As with its predecessor, it brings back 16 old courses and 16 new courses which the total sum of that is 32 tracks. Battle mode returns, but battling is done on race tracks now, unlike it was in previous Mario Kart titles. Time Trials and single-player VS mode return after an absence in Mario Kart 7. Stamps are also a new feature in the game, being collectible based on fulfilling certain criteria. They can be posted to Miiverse. Also, online modes return, being playable with up to two people on the same console. Also in this game is Mario Kart TV, where players can watch highlights from various races and battles. They can also share them to Miiverse and YouTube. Modes Grand Prix In Grand Prix mode, twelve players compete for first place in cups of four races. They are awarded with points based on their placements at the end of races, and the racer with more points at the end wins. This mode can be played with more than one player. Time trials .]]Time trials allow players to race for the best time possible, either on their own or against a ghost. It is not possible to play this mode with more than one player. VS .]]VS allows players to race, but with their own custom rule sets set such as difficultly. It makes a return to single player from Mario Kart 7, when it was only available in multiplayer mode. Here, it can be played alone or with up to four people. Battle .]]In battle mode, players must attack each other with items to make them lose balloons and gain a point. If players lose all of their balloons, they are eliminated. They can still play, but cannot win. They are invisible while defeated. This can be played with up to four people. Online Players can race and battle online, alone or with another player. Characters Thirty characters are playable in this game (including Mii) making this the most amount of playable characters a Mario Kart game has ever had. Baby Rosalina and Pink Gold Peach are introduced to the overall Mario series in this game. The Koopalings, consisting of Larry, Lemmy, Wendy, Ludwig, Iggy, Roy and Morton become playable for the first time ever. Baby Daisy and Shy Guy, for the first time in the series, do not need to be unlocked and are playable from the start. Lightweight Middleweight Heavyweight Any :Bold denotes unlockable character : Italic denotes downloadable character DLC On August 26, 2014, six characters were confirmed to be downloadable, including three from other series. These characters would be come in forms of 2 themed DLC Packs containing a total of eight vehicles (with seperate vehicle parts) and four cups consisting of four tracks each. Legend of Zelda x Mario Kart 8 DLC '' Characters: * Link *Tanooki Mario *Cat Peach Vehicle Parts: *Blue Falcon (kart) *B Dasher (kart) *Master Cycle (bike) *Tanooki Kart (kart) *Triforce Tires *Hylian Kite Tracks: *GCN Yoshi Circuit (Egg Cup) *Excitebike Arena (Egg Cup) *Dragon Driftway (Egg Cup) *Mute City (Egg Cup) *Wii Wario's Gold Mine (Triforce Cup) *SNES Rainbow Road (Triforce Cup) *Ice Ice Outpost (Triforce Cup) *Hyrule Circuit (Triforce Cup) ''Animal Crossing x Mario Kart 8 DLC Characters: *Dry Bowser *Villager *Isabelle Vehicle Parts: *City Tripper (bike) *Streetle (kart) *P-Wing (kart) *Bone Rattler (ATV) *Leaf Tires *Paper Glider Tracks: *GCN Baby Park (Crossing Cup) *GBA Cheese Land (Crossing Cup) *Wild Woods (Crossing Cup) *Animal Crossing (Crossing Cup) *3DS Neo Bowser City (Bell Cup) *GBA Ribbon Road (Bell Cup) *Super Bell Subway (Bell Cup) *Big Blue (Bell Cup) It was also confirmed that 8 other colors for Yoshi and Shy Guy would be included as well to include immediately. The colors are, red (not for Shy Guy), orange, yellow, green (not for Yoshi), light blue, blue, purple, black, and white. Unlocking criteria Unlike how previous games have done, characters will unlock at random each time a cup is won. Also, characters that are not yet unlocked appear as CPU characters during races, unlike previous Mario Kart Games. Kart parts Karts Bikes ATVs Wheels Gliders Items Items found on the track Returning items New items Courses New courses Retro courses Downloadable courses Battle stages In Mario Kart 8, unique battle stages are not present. The mode is instead played on race courses rather than enclosed arenas. All battle courses are playable from the start; regardless of whether the cup they appear in is or not. The only playable battle mode is Balloon Battle. Development Development started in 2012. It was announced in the Wii U Nintendo Direct on January 23, 2013. Nintendo presented more information at E3 2013.Wii U Direct - Nintendo Games 1.23.2013 Gallery Soundtrack Downloadable content Japanese owners of Mario Kart 8 can download a free Mercedes Benz GLA. The unique vehicle pack has been announced for the US and Europe which will be released for these regions on August 27th 2014. The pack includes three unique Mercedes Benz cars which are named, '1957 300 SL Roadster sports car', '1934 W 25 Silver Arrow formula racing car' and finally, 'Mercedes-Benz’ new compact SUV, the GLA'. It also comes with an option to toggle on/off on-screen maps of the tracks. You can find out more information here at the source for this information. Two separately-released DLC packs can also be pre-purchased on the Nintendo Wii U E-Shop. Each one pack includes 3 new characters, 4 new vehicles and 8 new courses. Here are some details of the new pack: Pack 1: The Legend of Zelda x Mario Kart 8 *Characters: Tanooki Mario, Cat Peach and Link. *Vehicles: Blue Falcon, B Dasher Master Cycle, Tanooki Kart *Wii Wario's Gold Mine, SNES Rainbow Road, GCN Yoshi Circuit, Excitebike Arena, Ice Ice Outpost, Dragon Driftway, Mute City, Hyrule Circuit Pack 2: Animal Crossing x Mario Kart 8 *Characters: Villager, Isabelle and Dry Bowser. *Vehicles: Streetle, City Tripper, P Wing, Bowser Trike. *Courses: GCN Baby Park, GBA Cheese Land, 3DS Neo Bowser City, GBA Ribbon Road, Animal Crossing, Big Blue, Super Bell Subway, Wild Woods. Trivia *In the E3 demo, Donkey Kong's standard bike color was brown, but in the final build it was yellow. *On the koopalings artwork, Morton's ATV color was black when in the final version it was green. The artwork is still used in the actual game though. *When you're in first place, a beat has been added to the music. This also happens in Mario Kart 7. This beat is called 'frontrunning'. *At the startup screen of Mario Kart 8, engine sounds can heard. This originated in Mario Kart 64's start up screen. * At the course selection screen, the courses can also be recognized by pictures on top of the name. This is a possible reference to [[Mario Kart: Double Dash!!|''Mario Kart: Double Dash!!]] as in that game there are pictures of the character it is based on (if any), a little background, and the name. These pictures are used as recognition of the tracks in online mode and names are not included underneath in online mode. * This is the first game to not have an Award Ceremony after a Grand Prix. * This is only the fourth game to feature only one battle mode; Balloon Battle, as well as the first since ''Mario Kart: Super Circuit. * This is the first game in the series to support Downloadable Content, a Cup where retro tracks meet up with new ones, game crossover, and Rainbow Road does not appear as final track in Cup. * This is the first game to have three Rainbow Road tracks. * It has been confirmed that an update that is set to come on the 23rd of April will add 200cc as an extra engine class. References Category:Games Category:Home console games * Category:Mario Kart series Category:DLC